The Houston Public Schools Board of Education met for a regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, September 20 at 6 p.m. In attendance were Board Members Stillin, Evenson, Krage, Bonner, Carlson and Wilson.
Following the Pledge of Allegiance, the board considered and passed several items of consent, including approval of the September 6, 2016 meeting minutes and payment of bills. One new contract for Mary Henry at the MNVA (Minnesota Virual Academy) Middle School was presented, along with four increased contracts for Rebekah Jorgensen, Sally Mensink, Beth Robelia and Kristen Rohloff, all for the MNVA High School. The board considered four hiring memos for Regina Bush for the MNVA Middle School, Kevin Condit for the MNVA Yearbook, Paul Grupe for Houston High School, and Ricky Smith for MNVA High School. Lastly, there was one resignation from Jessica Schwanbeck, a paraprofessional headed back to school. All were accepted.
The board moved on to items of discussion. Angela Specketer gave a presentation on behalf of MNVA in regards to special education funding. The MNVA is currently not receiving the same type of special education funding as the brick-and-mortar building, due to previous employees of the state Deptartment of Education saying they “didn’t think it could be done” in a virtual academy setup. Specketer said the new funding would be welcome online, as some students “aren’t making headway fast enough.” However, unlike a physical classroom, online regulations may limit the methods by which special education students can receive help. The board agreed to have the online committee look into the matter, with Board Member Carlson asking Superintendent Abraham if she could find any “wiggle room” in previously unused funds to go towards a solution.
The next item up for discussion was Principal Bartz’s elementary presentation. Bartz stated that the elementary is working on several initiatives for the 2016-2017 school year. The first is creating a PBIS, or Positive Behavior Intervention School, characterized by reinforcing “common behaviors that are positive” as opposed to focusing on negative behaviors. Bartz also spoke to improving the elementary reading scores, stating that the current Math program has already led to increased scores. Bartz stressed new reading programs, saying the goal was to spend more time teaching and less time testing. Finally, Bartz reported on an exploratory year for a STEM program: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.
Following Principal Bartz, Superintendent Abraham gave three presentations: Site Specific Staff Development Goals, Enrollment by Site, and Long Term Facility Maintenance. Abraham explained that the goals were developed using scores from 2011-2013. The gap between those scores and 100% of the students passing was then cut in half, and the school had planned to meet the 50% goal by 2017. In some cases, Abraham reported, the goal was met, but not in others due to a lack of incremental steps taken in the intervening years. The school district may be eligible for a new waiver under ESSA, the successor to No Child Left Behind, but the hearings will not be completed until Friday, September 23. Superintendent Abraham reported that enrollment in MNVA had increased by 16 students, and that the Facility Maintenance is developing a “punch list” to make sure all contracted work had been completed; Abraham did not want to sign off on facility maintenance until she was sure everything had been done correctly and was running as engineered. Lastly, new windows in the high school library have been cutting down on air fluctuation, leading to a projected decrease in energy costs.
The board then voted to approve Policy 524, the Tech Equipment and Internet Acceptable Use & Safety Policy. The policy was approved unanimously by the board.
The board then considered the certification of a proposed tax levy. Superintendent Abraham explained that the funding mechanism had recently changed: funding is now based on the average daily membership of a school. Houston Public Schools is one of the few in the state that has a majority of students who have open-enrolled, Abraham said, and that could lead to some “sticker shock” if the board chose to levy the maximum amount. The consensus was to wait until a special meeting on September 27 in order to wait for newer adjusted numbers to come in from the state. A proposed levy must be submitted by September 30, and can be changed in the December meeting if the numbers are late getting in from the state. As the proposed levy was not decided, the board will not set a Truth in Taxation meeting until the September 27 special meeting.
Superintendent Abraham made some closing announcements: MNVA’s audit concluded that the school was well above the national average, with a grade that Abraham said “exceeds expectations.” She thanked Board Member Bonner, Lisa Schultz and Angela Specketer with their help in preparing both the 2-year audit and 3-year review for MNVA. Houston’s all-school reunion is scheduled for October 1: there will be tours of both the elementary and high schools following a 10 a.m. grand re-opening. The online committee is scheduled to meet October 4 and the facility committee on October 20. Board Member Bonner proposed four future agenda items: a student board member, onboarding for new board members, the date of the next high school board report (October 4), and a moving up of the date to place new members on the informal tech committee. The meeting adjourned when Krage made the motion and Evenson seconded.